AMA/FIM SUPERCROSS

SUZUKI RACES INTO TOP 10 POINTS AT ATLANTA SX


Team Suzuki Press Office – April 18.

Brandon Hartranft: Suzuki RM-Z450 – 9th
Adam Enticknap: Suzuki RM-Z450 – 20th
Justin Bogle: Suzuki RM-Z450 – 21st
Derek Drake: Suzuki RM-Z250 – 16th
Carson Mumford: Suzuki RM-Z250 – 19th

Suzuki riders used strong finishes at the weekend’s Monster Energy AMA/ FIM World Supercross Championship in Atlanta to climb into the top 10 in both the 450 and 250 classes.

Twisted Tea Suzuki Presented by Progressive Insurance’s Brandon Hartranft grabbed ninth and put his Suzuki RM-Z450 into the top10 in 450 class points at round 14 of the 17-round series. Hartranft's teammates Justin Bogle and Adam Enticknap also used their Suzuki RM-Z450s' horsepower on the high-speed supercross track to garner more championship points.

BarX/ Chaparral Suzuki's Derek Drake and his Suzuki RM-Z250 won a race on his way to breaking into the top 10 in the 250 East division from his result inside Atlanta Motor Speedway. BarX/ Chaparral Suzuki's West Coast rider, Carson Mumford, also brought home points for his division through the event's unique 250 class East/ West Showdown format.

Hartranft used his Twisted Tea Suzuki RM-Z450's power, agility, and stability to pull off another strong finish on a long, high-speed track that stretched out across the Atlanta Motor Speedway infield. He used a top-five heat race finish to put himself in a good position to deliver in the main.

"I felt great today in the night show," said Hartranft. "I had a solid heat race and then a solid ride in the main for ninth. I fought hard, tried to catch eighth, but we ended up ninth overall. I'm healthy and we moved up to the top 10 in points so I'm super happy. I'm ready to go back home and have another solid week and head to Foxborough.

Derek Drake got out of the gate strong then put his Suzuki power down to rip a brilliant holeshot in his heat race. Unfortunately, morning rains left the track dotted with wet sections, and one led to a crash. Drake pulled another holeshot in the LCQ and went on to win and earned enough points in the main even to advance two positions in the 250 East class standings.

"I had some flashes of brilliance in Atlanta. I had a nice heat race going, then landed in a mud hole and crashed. Then I had another great start in the LCQ and went on to win that race. The main was not my best start. It was hard to make passes with such stiff competition in the East-West Shootout. I'm looking forward to next weekend back on the east coast and having some more strong starts!"

Justin Bogle entered the first corner of his heat race side by side for the lead. As another rider went wide, Bogle braked hard and sliced through the flat corner to grab the holeshot on his Twisted Tea Suzuki RM-Z450. An incident early in the main event, unfortunately, prevented his track speed from delivering the finish he's capable of.

"I had a close call on press day which made for a good video, but not for a very fun time," said Bogle after the hard landing on the Friday before the race. "Today was just kind of an average day. I got a good start in the heat. I didn't ride as well as I can but ended up with a fourth in the heat. I got a decent start in the main, then had an issue in the first rhythm section and bent my shifter under the foot peg. I had to pull in to get it bent back which put me a lap down. I ended up going down again at the end. It was just a rough weekend and I'm glad to get out of here healthy for next weekend."

Adam Enticknap continued his strong return to racing. A good start in the LCQ had him battling for the lead in that race. In the main event, Enticknap fought hard and finessed his Twisted Tea Suzuki RM-Z450 around the tricky track. Illustrating his popular broadcast personality, the popular athlete co-hosted a track preview video for the race promotion group the day before the event.

"This weekend went better than last weekend. It was a solid day for me," Enticknap said after the race. "I made it through the LCQ, got third place, and made the main event. Unfortunately, right now I'm just not as in shape as I want to be. I just have to keep pushing. We're heading in the right direction and we're ready for Foxborough."

Carson Mumford adapted quickly to a truncated qualifying schedule caused by heavy morning rains. He put his RM-Z250 into the main event to pull some points out of the Showdown toward his West Coast series.

"I had a very good day going into practice. I qualified seventh." Mumford reported, "From my heat race I made it straight into the main, but unfortunately struggled terribly in the main. It's a race I want to learn and move forward from, but I had a great time in Atlanta. I love that area."

"Overall, it went well," summed up Twisted Tea/ H.E.P. Motorsports/ Suzuki Presented by Progressive Insurance Team Manager Dustin Pipes. "The heat races went well for Justin and Brandon who qualified pretty easily into the main. Adam, unfortunately, had to go to the LCQ where he also transferred in. The main event was a little rough. Brandon got ninth and got top 10 in points, but I think we left a little on the table. Justin had a mechanical, he damaged a shift lever and had a couple of falls that relegated him to a disappointing result. Adam just needs to work on putting his qualifying speed into the main event and we should get better results. We're looking forward to Foxborough. It's a big race for us. We're hosting the Boston Beer family so Twisted Tea will be there and we're hoping to have a stand-out showing there."

The teams and racers head to New Jersey this weekend for round 15 of the 17-race series. The Suzuki racers are holding strong through the long series and looking to continue their momentum toward better and better results late into the season. Fans should take note of race times as the final events of the series are scheduled earlier in the day than traditional supercross night schedules.

Atlanta Image Gallery (BrownDogWilson Photography): CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS

Championship points (round by round): CLICK HERE





 For more stories about Justin Bogle, Click Here. For photos, Click Here.

For more stories about Adam Enticknap, Click Here. For photos, Click Here.

For more stories about Brandon Hartranft, Click Here. For photos, Click Here.

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